A new finding may explain how stress could ultimately lead to premature ageing. Chronic psychological stress is associated with accelerated shortening of the caps, called telomeres, on the ends of chromosomes in white blood cells - and thus hasten their demise - according to a report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Telomeres promote chromosome stability, Dr Elissa S. Epel at the University of California, San Francisco, and her colleagues explain. Telomeres shorten with each replication of the cell, and cells cease dividing when telomeres shorten sufficiently.
The team investigated the theory that psychological stress affects telomere shortening and thereby contributes to accelerated ageing.
Their study included 39 healthy, premenopausal women who were primary caregivers for a child with a chronic illness, and 19 age-matched mothers of healthy children who served as a comparison "control" group. Stress was measured with a standardised questionnaire, and telomere length was measured in participants' blood samples.